In Mali, the transitional government is trying to calm down. The state of emergency has been in force in the country since Saturday morning with health measures to counter the spread of Covid-19, but also security regulations, due to the fight against the terrorist threat. Many votes have been taken against provisions that are considered liberticidal. Authorities issued a statement on Sunday in the form of an update to address these issues.
“The instruction on the state of emergency is in no way intended to call into question any freedom at all, it is not intended to prescribe new measures and serves only as a reminder of the provisions of laws and regulations.” The Ministry of Territorial Administration is trying to allay concerns over the instructions given on Friday to governors, prefects and sub-prefects of Mali, reminding them of the battery of legal and regulatory tools available to them in the event of a state of emergency. Control of media and social networks, the ability to restrict movement or even unlock without trial someone who opposes the actions of public authorities, these instructions have given rise to troubled or even outraged reactions among journalists’ organizations defending human rights.
► To read also: Mali: general freedoms restricted by the state of emergency
But the possibilities do not say the intentions, today, mainly, explain the authorities. And this is also what other actors in the Malian political scene think. “These are measures contained in the texts,” said former Prime Minister Moussa Mara, who did not support the military coup and is now a vigilant accompanist to the transition. “The minister made the mistake of recalling them in his instruction when they need not be, but there is no desire to tighten the screw,” said Moussa Mara.
An opinion shared by the lawyer and former Minister of Justice Maître Mamadou Ismaïla Konaté, a fine connoisseur of Malian law and an informed observer of Malian political life, who recalls that these legal provisions are not new and urges both sides to “not burn fuel for the fire “unnecessarily:” The law on emergency permits is dated from 2015, revised 2017, and until today the implementation takes place in the same framework and in the same context, except that this time the emergency permit, in addition to the safety of people and goods, takes into account This is the news. I can understand the concerns of journalists and press workers, but there is no room for restrictions on freedoms other than preserving health and preserving the public interest. People today are surprised that there is a restriction on freedoms. we are in a country where we are dealing with healers, and where free radios provide access to these healers who often have the opportunity to say “covid does not exist” or “here is the cure”. So the instructions (given to the representatives of the state about the state of emergency, ed. Note) will facilitate the implementation of the law. There is no fire when it comes to general freedoms. Whoever opposed these freedoms and rights would find all the malians facing him. ”
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